Various bipolar, ultrasonic, and/or electro-mechanical surgical devices exist which are used to cauterize and coagulate tissue in a surgical procedure. Some devices use bipolar electrical energy in order to cut and/or coagulate tissue. Generally, bipolar surgical instruments clamp the tissue prior to the application of the electro surgical energy. Some devices provide opposing jaws to perform the clamping or grasping procedure where an electrode(s) is disposed on the inner surface of the jaws. These bipolar surgical instruments coagulate, cut and separate tissue by charging the electrode(s) to apply heat to the tissue between the jaws.
During the use of bipolar surgical instruments, the heat generated by the electrodes causes the desired coagulation and cutting of tissue. Several of the bipolar surgical instruments may encounter problems with the application of the heat of the tissue. Adjacent tissue may be damaged due to application of excessive heat. Conversely, where less energy is applied to the electrodes in order to prevent over heating, the coagulation of the tissue may require more time than desired.
Fully mechanical surgical devices are also available in order to perform the above procedure. The mechanical devices require the application of force to staple and cut the tissue. Many of the existing mechanical devices use four rows of staples in order to ensure the proper results. Due to the cutting and stapling functions, many of these mechanical surgical instruments require an excessive amount of force in order to effectively perform their functions.
Therefore, an object of the present invention provides an electro-mechanical that allows greater control of heat applied to the tissue by the bipolar electrodes and allows the use of less mechanical force when incorporating the use of mechanical force.